The San Diego Padres – who are one game ahead of the open-for-business Mets – are buyers.
San Diego was finalizing a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates that would land veteran starter Rich Hill and first baseman Ji-Man Choi shortly ahead of Tuesday’s deadline.
The Pirates would receive lefty Jackson Wolf, outfielder Estuar Suero and first baseman Alfonso Rivas in return, according to the Post’s Joel Sherman.
Wolf was the Padres’ 16th-ranked prospect, according to MLB.com.
The Padres are essentially the West Coast Mets this season, a tremendous spender and tremendous disappointment.
They are 52-55 and five games out of a wild card spot.
But they still added pitching and hitting in an attempt to push themselves over the top.
The 43-year-old Hill is still a valuable, reliable lefty with a good curveball and a 4.76 ERA in 22 starts.
When healthy, Choi’s lefty bat is a solid one, though he has missed much of this season with an Achilles strain. He returned in early July and has been hot, with a 1.091 OPS in his past 12 games.